Valve Assembly Guide Reduces Wear and Friction

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Solution Overview

Problem

High-pressure cleaning device valve arrangements wear out quickly due to high frictional forces and pressure, making them unsuitable for high-pressure applications without complex structures or pressure relief mechanisms.

Innovation Solution

A valve arrangement with a guide adjacent to the valve seat, featuring peripheral surfaces with recesses or pockets, which reduces flow resistance and guides the valve body only near the seat, minimizing wear and friction.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Device complexity

If a valve body is guided only by a closing spring without pressure relief, then the design remains simple, but the valve body wears very quickly due to high frictional forces and impact at high pressures

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevalve arrangement designVSAvoidvalve body wear resistance

Core Design Contradiction:

Device complexityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

A guide element is introduced as an intermediary component between the valve body and valve seat. This guide element absorbs the impact during valve closure and provides guided movement, preventing direct impact wear between the valve body and valve seat while maintaining overall design simplicity

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The guide element is positioned to receive and cushion the valve body before it contacts the valve seat. This beforehand cushioning prevents high-impact closure that would otherwise cause rapid wear of the valve body at high pressures

Inventive Principle:

Principle #11Beforehand cushioning (Prior cushioning)

2Force

If a piston is used to act on the valve body for pressure relief, then opening force is reduced, but the design becomes complex and frictional forces increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevalve opening forceVSAvoidvalve arrangement structure

Core Design Contradiction:

ForceVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The complex piston mechanism for pressure relief is extracted and replaced with a simpler guide element that provides both guidance and impact absorption functions, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining adequate opening force characteristics

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

3Stability of the object's composition

If the guide guides the valve body over the entire valve stroke, then guidance is continuous, but flow resistance increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevalve body guidance stabilityVSAvoidflow resistance

Core Design Contradiction:

Stability of the object's compositionVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The guide element provides guidance and support only in the local region near the valve seat rather than along the entire valve stroke. This localized guidance maintains stability where needed (during closure) while minimizing interference with fluid flow during the opening stroke

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentEP2172680B1Valve assembly

Publication Date: 2020.01.15 SUTTNER GMBH & CO KG

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AI summary

The valve arrangement (1) has a non-return valve (6), which has a valve body and an assigned valve seating. The valve arrangement or non-return valve has a guidance directly attached to a valve seating. The guidance laterally guides or centers the valve body mounted directly before the valve seating and for a section of the valve hub. The guidance is formed in a single-piece with the valve seating or is firmly connected with the valve seating. The valve seating is made of metal, particularly hard metal or ceramic.